(31) Days of Good: 12.23.12

“’All the Rowboats’ is far and away the most powerful song on the record (if not the most powerful song Spektor has written to date), even if on first read-through of the lyrics, it’s about a depressing pass through a museum. A haunting piano piece does wonders to cut the soul. The piece rises and falls like a boat caught in a sea storm, and you feel trapped in both the calm and comparative chaos until it ends in what could be small explosions, holes being blasted out of the hull, ultimately sinking the ship and all hopes of survival.” (via PopMatters)

♩Regina Spektor – All the Rowboats [from What We Saw From The Cheap Seats]

“On the uplifting ‘Leonard,’ Van Etten couldn’t be more direct, singing in a gorgeous tangled web over banjo plucks and acoustic shuffle: ‘Well, well, hell / I am bad at loving.’ It may not sound like much read from a lyrics sheet, but sung in her raw, Jeff Buckley-meets-Neko Case-after-a-couple-packs-of-Marlboros croon, it sounds like a profound confession.” (via Paste)